The spirituality of the Order came from its rule, and encompassed a unique take on the perception of God, the Liturgy, the Sacraments, and much else besides. TIZIANO Vecellio, A Knight of Malta, 1510-15, Oil on canvas, 80 x 64 cm, Galleria degli Uffizi, Florence The Kings of Jerusalem entrusted to them such important castles as Krak des Chevaliers and Margat in Syria and Belvoir in Israel. Lazarus, they became the shock troops of the Crusades. John in battle against the Saracens was such that, with their brother (and sometimes rival) orders of the Temple, the Teutonic Knights, and St. This process would continue the prowess of the Knights of St. At Raymond’s death in 1160, the Order had posts in England, Germany, Poland, Denmark, and elsewhere. Support for the order’s work - in the form of donations of lands and churches - began to come in from many parts of Europe. Raymond du Puy, militarized the order, to provide security both for the hospitals and for pilgrims journeying back and forth to Jerusalem from the coast. Gerard died in 1120, successive Popes had confirmed his order in its privileges and independence. They were able to found branch hospitals in various Mediterranean ports to treat ill pilgrims before they set out for the Holy Land. John of Jerusalem were given gifts of land in Palestine by Godefroi and his brother, King Baldwin I of Jerusalem. Gerard’s brothers and their new Order of St. Many of the ill and wounded crusaders were treated there, and as a result, Bl. What is certain is that when Godefroi de Bouillon and his crusaders liberated Jerusalem, they found the Hospital operating at what is now the site of the German Lutheran Church of the Redeemer and the Greek Orthodox Church of St. Gerard came from had been there, and for that matter where he himself was from. There are various accounts of how long the institution that Bl. Their leader was one now a Blessed - called Gerard de Tonques, whose holiness was matched by his administrative ability. But it was reoccupied by a group of monks who took to caring for sick pilgrims. During the persecution of native and pilgrim Christians which led to the Crusades, the first monastery was shut down. John the Baptist, and the other called Santa Maria Latina. Even before the First Crusade, there were, near the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, two monasteries - one dedicated to St. This mission is certainly in keeping with their origins. Although its membership include some of the most noble of Europeans and wealthiest of Americans, they choose to work with the poorest of the poor - with, as their rule puts it, “our lords, the sick.” The major purpose of this government is not exacting taxes out of its citizens or ensuring their political correctness, but almost wholly to aiding the sick and impoverished world-wide through a network of hospitals and clinics, an enormous ambulance corps, emergency relief flights, and guided pilgrimages to Lourdes. The territory over which its word is law is smaller even then the Vatican, consisting of only a palace and a villa in Rome and a small fort in Malta. It is not a country, but a religious order - which at the same time is military. It is recognized as an independent country under international law, exchanging ambassadors with over a hundred governments issuing coins, stamps, and passports sending an observer to the United Nations supporting an army and in every way carrying on like any other sovereign regime. The knights one may meet working at the clinic or on ceremonial occasions are part of a world-wide organization, based in Rome. STROZZI, Bernardo, Portrait of a Maltese Knight, Oil on canvas, 129 x 98 cm, Pinacoteca di Brera, Milan
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